Lucas Digne marked his return to Everton by assisting Emi Buendia with his delivery from a late first-half corner, to the delight of some Aston Villa fans reacting on social media.
The Toffees sold Digne to Villa for £25m on January 13, as Steven Gerrard’s second signing of the mid-season window. He followed Barcelona midfielder Philippe Coutinho into Villa Park, with the Brazilian returning to the Premier League on loan.
Digne had featured 13 times in the top-flight for Everton this season before joining Aston Villa. But the 28-year-old had not played in their previous four fixtures. Former Blues boss Rafa Benitez also omitted the Frenchman from his matchday squad on three occasions.
Gerrard handed Digne an immediate debut in the Villans’ 2-2 draw with Manchester United two-days after his arrival in Birmingham. The full-back failed to influence the scoring as the Villa Park natives came from two behind to snatch a point in the 81st-minute, however.
But Digne – who had not provided any assists in the Premier League for Everton this season – helped Aston Villa to break the deadlock at Goodison Park by finding Buendia in the box.
Buendia put his claret-and-blue side ahead in the second-minute of first-half stoppage-time by flashing his header past Jordan Pickford. The England number one got his fingertips onto the ball, but could only flick its path over Andros Townsend on the back post.
Aston Villa fans laud Digne for corner assist vs Everton
Aston Villa fans loved that Digne registered his first assist for the Villa Park outfit by feeding Buendia with a corner against Everton. Some also took to social media to laud the full-back for finally giving them an ‘elite’ set-piece taker.
Of Aston Villa’s 27 goals in their prior 20 Premier League games before Saturday’s meeting, seven had come from set-pieces. But only two had come when playing away from home, per WhoScored data.
The Villans also only ranked seventh in the top-flight last term for set-piece goals with 11. Yet, again, only three came when away from Villa Park – the 12th-best record in the league.
So, here are some of the messages Aston Villa fans shared on Digne assisting Buendia with a corner delivery against Everton on Saturday…
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